BADC Hosts Conversation on Role of Black Voluntary Bar Associations
March 03, 2021
Dionna Maria Lewis of the Bar Association of the District of Columbia
On February 25, the Bar Association of the District of Columbia (BADC) closed out its Black History Month celebration with a fireside chat about the important role of Black voluntary bar associations in the career development and advancement of Black attorneys.
Moderated by Dionna Maria Lewis, chair of BADC’s diversity committee, the virtual conversation featured Tricia “CK” Hoffer, president of the National Bar Association; Tony Towns, president of the Washington Bar Association; Sheila Boston, president of the New York City Bar Association; Erinn Martin, president of the Greater Washington Area Chapter, Women Lawyers Division, National Bar Association; Shaundricka Ranel, president of the J. Franklyn Bourne Bar Association, Inc.; and Henry Floyd Jr., president of Sigma Delta Tau Legal Fraternity.
Lewis first asked each panelist to explain why joining Black voluntary bar associations is important. Hoffer replied, “If you’re a lawyer of African descent, Black bar associations are as important to your professional life as oxygen is to all of us.”
Hoffer said the National Bar Association was created in 1925 because African American lawyers were barred from joining the American Bar Association at that time. The need for such bar associations, with their nurturing and networking mechanisms, continues today. “We need someplace to call home because the life of a Black lawyer is not always easy,” Hoffer said.
The panelists also discussed how Black bar associations retain membership, particularly during the pandemic when some members are experiencing financial hardship. Ranel said the J. Franklyn Bourne Bar Association in Maryland focuses on more than just members’ professional lives. “We’ve been doing financial planning programs, home ownership programs,” she said.
“We’re actually doing a program next month on the COVID vaccine and the mistrust of the medical community. So, it’s about building up the whole person as well as touching on certain things that affect us as [law] practitioners.”
“You have to stay relevant. Not only do we have the mentorship, we also raise money for scholarships. We give recommendations for judicial appointments and political recommendations for the U.S. Attorney General for the District of Columbia,” Towns said about the Washington Bar Association. “We also turn the mirror toward ourselves and do things that really build up our membership such as having yoga classes, health classes, and current discussions such as whether we should defund the police. We also partner with other organizations. All of those things help keep your members active and excited.”
Lewis later asked the panelists how they define success. Many of them agreed that the definition of success is individual, based upon where people find their happiness. “Comparison is the demon of joy,” Ranel said. “If you compare yourself to others, you will forever be unhappy.”
“Destination addition” is another professional trap that Ranel spoke about. “It’s basically the belief that your happiness lies in the next destination. You just have to enjoy the journey.”
“I think about how many lives I’ve impacted,” Floyd said. “For me, it’s the work behind the scenes. Success is not entitled, and it’s not of materialistic things. It’s in you helping your community and how many lives you’ve helped, even if it’s just one.”
Boston spoke about how her spiritual faith sustains her. “Success for me is about [having] a moral imperative,” she explained. “I wake up in the morning and my thing is, ‘God, bless me, please. And help me be a blessing to others.’”
Hoffer echoed Boston’s sentiments about the importance of having a spiritual foundation. It helped when her sons were stopped by the Atlanta police when they were driving her car. “Three of the most devastating minutes of my life” is how she described the experience of hearing the news. “I got on my knees and prayed, ‘God, please don’t let this be my narrative.’ In those three minutes, I was actually afraid that my children may not survive. So, that’s not success — thinking that your children may not survive when they get stopped by the police for no reason.”
“My children survived it. But when we talk about success, at that moment success, my law degree, and my [professional accomplishments] meant nothing to me,” Hoffer added.
When it comes to challenges the panelists face in leading their respective bar associations, Floyd and Ranel said that some older bar associations are more reluctant to embrace new, innovative ideas and technology.
Boston talked about her unique challenge of leading a nonpartisan bar association and speaking out on certain issues, such as the recent Supreme Court nominations, the last U.S. presidential election, and the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
“I had a lot of spirited debates,” Boston said. “To me it’s not about being partisan; it’s about speaking truth and the protection of the rule of law. If we’re going to be a noble profession, if we are really going to be about [supporting] democratic institutions and protecting them and having public confidence in our judicial system, we got to do better. And we need bar associations to stand up and speak about what is right and true.”
